Radeon 9800 Pro

[NapalmTruth]

I want to upgrade from my GeForce FX 5200 AGP 128MB DDR... would this be a good choice:

Radeon 9800 Pro 128MB DDR AGP for 200$

Edit:
Alright, what im getting my system ready for is Half-Life2, I want to (atleast) be able to play it with some ease, and not worry about it being laggy... and the fact that I cant play the games Ive got now without it being lag free is starting to piss me off a little (Like Madden 05, BF:1942/Vietnam, Doom3, Vietcong, ShellShock). A Friend of mine told me I should upgrade my Video Card, Processor, and take out the 256 stick of RAM and replace it with another 512 stick and it should run 'okay'. Let me know what you think.

Im also taking recommendations on what Video Card and what Processor I should order, the more the marrier.

As of right now, my specs are:

Operating System Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition
Motherboard Intel Pentium 4A, 1800 MHz (4.5 x 400)
Motherboard Name Intel Billings 2 D845EBG2 (6 PCI, 1 AGP, 2 DIMM, Audio)
MB Chipset Intel Brookdale i845E
System Memory 768 MB (DDR SDRAM)

Display
Video Adapter NVIDIA GeForce FX 5200 (128 MB)
3D Accelerator nVIDIA GeForce FX 5200

CPU Properties
CPU Type Intel Pentium 4A, 1800 MHz (4.5 x 400)
CPU Alias Northwood, A80532

[kram 2.0]

Looks like Graphics Card is the thing you shoudl upgrade. The ATI Radeon 9800 Pro (256-bit) should be more than prepared to handle HL2 - I bought that graphics card myself for the same intentions.

kram

[NapalmTruth]

Originally Posted by kram8806 Looks like Graphics Card is the thing you shoudl upgrade. The ATI Radeon 9800 Pro (256-bit) should be more than prepared to handle HL2 - I bought that graphics card myself for the same intentions. kram

How much did it cost you... got a link?

[kram 2.0]

It costed me 210 USD...that was a while back though. You can get the PowerColor Radeon 9800 Pro 128MB 256-bit for 197 USD...a very good price for its stellar performance. Only months ago, it was the best card on the market.

EDIT:
Happy Birthday NapalmTruth

kram

[NapalmTruth]

Originally Posted by kram8806 EDIT: Happy Birthday NapalmTruth kram

Thank You.

How about these, they sound any good?:

http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProduc...163-111&depa=0

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduc...102-361&depa=0

[kram 2.0]

Save money - go with the 128MB version I recommended. The performance difference is minimal for the 50+ USD difference you have to pay for the 256MB version. The 256MB version utilizes a newer but slower memory system, DDR2, and so the doubled RAM doesn't show that big of a marginal performance boost. But if I were to pick between the two, I'd suggest the ATI made one.

kram